Hawking: paper packaging is far more harmful to the environment than plastic
March 12, 2021
Hawking started with raw materials. He found that the production of foam cups and paper cups required the same amount of petroleum products, about 4 grams of fuel. In the paper, Hawking pointed out that it caused additional damage to the forest. Hawking said: "To make a paper cup, you need 1.8 grams of inorganic chemicals, and 0.65 grams of plastic cups." These chemicals include sodium hydroxide, chlorine, sodium chlorate, sulfuric acid, sulfur dioxide and calcium hydroxide.
Hawking said that the chemical requirements of plastics are low because a large amount of catalysts are used in the manufacturing process, and these catalysts can promote the production process without being consumed. Hawking added: "These catalysts are not released into the environment. They are harmless compared to many chemicals used in paper." The article said: "Research shows that the steam consumption of paper cups is polystyrene foam cups. 12 times, 36 times that of electricity, twice the amount of cooling water.” Each paper cup has more than 2.5 times more emissions than foam.
The article points out that according to the study, when paper is degraded in a humid environment, it will release methane gas, “a gas that is considered to contribute to global warming.” He said that the most important environment for plastic production Hazardous emissions are the use of pentane, a blowing agent. In this article in The Wall Street Journal, pentane causes harmful ozone concentrations at low altitudes. However, he said that from the basis of each cup of coffee, the amount of harmful gases on paper is definitely greater than plastic.
According to the 2016 EPS circulation rate report of the EPS industry alliance, EPS production in 2016 was 63 million pounds, and post-industrial material was 55.7 million pounds, with a total weight of 118.7 pounds. The EPS Industry Alliance lists 87 member companies that recycle EPS foam packaging. The alliance said that EPS can be effectively recycled and reused, and it is increasing every year.
Information Processing: Carton Street
